I was hoping I could do the DOST report I've been putting off for a while, a couple of opps, a new personal blog entry, and some tags from my co-bloggers tonight, but I am soooo tired and my brain is not functioning like it used to.

Take note: what I feel right now isn't like the usual I-am-tired-and-I-wanna-sleep kind of thing. The feeling I have right now is shit (in a weird, scary way). Argh.

1. Mention the person who tagged you and create a link back to them.2. Copy-paste the traits for all the twelve months (see below).3. Pick your month of birth.4. Highlight the traits that apply to you.5. Tag 12 people and let them know by visiting their blogs and leaving a comment for them.6. Let the person who tagged you know when you've done it!

:: My Birth Month is...

JANUARY: Stubborn and hard-hearted. Ambitious and serious. Loves to teach and be taught. Always looking at people’s flaws and weaknesses. Likes to criticize. Hardworking and productive. Smart, neat and organized. Sensitive and has deep thoughts. Knows how to make others happy. Quiet unless excited or tensed. Rather reserved. Highly attentive. Resistant to illnesses but prone to colds. Romantic but has difficulties expressing love. Loves children. Loyal. Has great social abilities yet easily jealous. Very stubborn and money cautious.

*Some of my comments: How come my month has mostly negative traits?! Argh! Yes, people, I am ambitious and stubborn! I am laitera! Hahaha! I love to teach, but since I am hard-headed, I rarely want to be taught. I am hardworking depending on what's at stake. I am sensitive and I get overanalytical about certain things. I'm not sure if I make people happy. LOL! And I sometimes do not pay attention. Boo! I'd like to think I have great social abilities and that I am money cautious, but several situations have proven me otherwise (especially the money part! It's hard not to succumb to the call of the mall! Hahahaha!).

:: The Twelve Months

JANUARY: Stubborn and hard-hearted. Ambitious and serious. Loves to teach and be taught. Always looking at people’s flaws and weaknesses. Likes to criticize. Hardworking and productive. Smart, neat and organized. Sensitive and has deep thoughts. Knows how to make others happy. Quiet unless excited or tensed. Rather reserved. Highly attentive. Resistant to illnesses but prone to colds. Romantic but has difficulties expressing love. Loves children. Loyal. Has great social abilities yet easily jealous. Very stubborn and money cautious.

APRIL: Active and dynamic. Decisive and hasty but tends to regret. Attractive and affectionate to oneself. Strong mentality. Loves attention. Diplomatic. Consoling, friendly and solves people’s problems. Brave and fearless. Adventurous. Loving and caring. Suave and generous. Emotional. Aggressive. Hasty. Good memory. Moving. Motivates oneself and others. Sickness usually of the head and chest. Sexy in a way that only their lover can see.

JULY: Fun to be with. Secretive. Difficult to fathom and to be understood. Quiet unless excited or tensed. Takes pride in oneself. Has reputation. Easily consoled. Honest. Concerned about people’s feelings. Tactful. Friendly. Approachable. Emotional temperamental and unpredictable. Moody and easily hurt. Witty and sparkly. Not revengeful. Forgiving but never forgets. Dislikes nonsensical and unnecessary things. Guides others physically and mentally. Sensitive and forms impressions carefully. Caring and loving. Treats others equally. Strong sense of sympathy. Wary and sharp. Judges people through observations. Hardworking. No difficulties in studying. Loves to be alone. Always broods about the past and the old friends. Likes to be quiet. Homely person. Waits for friends. Never looks for friends. Not aggressive unless provoked. Prone to having stomach and dieting problems. Loves to be loved. Easily hurt but takes long to recover.

AUGUST: Loves to joke. Attractive. Suave and caring. Brave and fearless. Firm and has leadership qualities. Knows how to console others. Too generous and egoistic. Takes high pride in oneself. Thirsty for praises. Extraordinary spirit. Easily angered. Angry when provoked. Easily jealous. Observant. Careful and cautious. Thinks quickly. Independent thoughts. Loves to lead and to be led. Loves to dream. Talented in the arts, music and defense. Sensitive but not petty. Poor resistance against illnesses. Learns to relax. Hasty and trusty. Romantic. Loving and caring. Loves to make friends.

SEPTEMBER: Suave and compromising. Careful, cautious and organized. Likes to point out people’s mistakes. Likes to criticize. Stubborn. Quiet but able to talk well. Calm and cool. Kind and sympathetic. Concerned and detailed. Loyal but not always honest. Does work well. Very confident. Sensitive. Good memory. Clever and knowledgeable. Loves to look for information. Must control oneself when criticizing. Able to motivate oneself. Understanding. Fun to be around. Secretive. Loves leisure and traveling. Hardly shows emotions. Tends to bottle up feelings. Very choosy, especially in relationships. Systematic.

NOVEMBER: Has a lot of ideas. Difficult to fathom. Thinks forward. Unique and brilliant. Extraordinary ideas. Sharp thinking. Fine and strong clairvoyance. Can become good doctors. Dynamic in personality. Secretive. Inquisitive. Knows how to dig secrets. Always thinking. Less talkative but amiable. Brave and generous. Patient. Stubborn and hard-hearted. If there is a will, there is a way. Determined. Never give up. Hardly becomes angry unless provoked. Loves to be alone. Thinks differently from others. Sharp-minded. Motivates oneself. Does not appreciate praises. High-spirited. Well-built and tough. Deep love and emotions. Romantic. Uncertain in relationships. Homely. Hardworking. High abilities. Trustworthy. Honest and keeps secrets. Not able to control emotions. Unpredictable.

DECEMBER: Loyal and generous. Sexy. Patriotic. Active in games and interactions. Impatient and hasty. Ambitious. Influential in organizations. Fun to be with. Loves to socialize. Loves praises. Loves attention. Loves to be loved. Honest and trustworthy. Not pretending. Short tempered. Changing personality. Not egotistic. Take high pride in oneself. Hates restrictions. Loves to joke. Good sense of humor. Logical.

It’s Christmas once again, the time of the year that has always been blissful to me and my family. The eve of the 25th is the time that I cook my oh-so-loved pasta and Mom makes her fruit salad, with matching slices of the must-have sweet ham served on the dining table. As the clock strikes 12, we would all greet each other a Merry Christmas, and then together we will devour the food on the table. No more opening of gifts though, since we are always excited to unwrapped gifts as soon as we receive them. We usually do not wait till Christmas before we check out the gifts we received.

Wow. This has been happening for the past 22 years of my life. This thought makes me realize how lucky I am to share these blessings with everyone in my family. Can you imagine how many families or children out there get to enjoy the holidays like we do? How many people out there gather on the eve to eat their Noche Buena?

Just how many people out there appreciate Christmas like we do?

As I browsing the net, I found an online site that makes it possible for unfortunate children to enjoy not only the Christmas season, but also all the days of the year. CarAngel, a brainchild of Angel Ministries, does an appealing work in using car donations to create projects for the benefit of many unfortunate kids and adults alike.

CarAngel uses collected funds from “donate-a-car” programs to produce positive children’s animation and anti-drug documentaries, and to distribute free children’s DVDs. Using these funds, they also run a teenage boys’ rehabilitation home in Arizona where young men are taught new life skills through a Bible school program based entirely on the Word of God. Furthermore, they donate uplifting books into prisons to help rehabilitate those who are serving sentences.

CarAngel is truly a blessing in disguise to our needy brothers and sisters. Visit their site at www.carangel.com now and discover the other wonderful things they do.

This evening, Big Brother announced to the celebrity housemates some changes in the prizes that await the Big Four, a never before twist in the many seasons of PBB in the Philippines.

The housemates, who have just heard director Maryo delos Reyes' comments on their short film, were gathered in the living room when Kuya suddenly called his "special guests" and the Wowowee girls started coming in, all in skimpy clothing, with boxes full of money. You should’ve seen Baron going crazy! Haha!

What the hell are all the boxes full of money for? It appears that Big Brother has decided to double the cash prizes of the show: P400,000 for the 4th placer, P600,000 for the 3rd placer, P1,000,000 for the 2nd placer, and a whopping P2,000,000 (plus other perks) for the Big Winner. Kuya also said that challenges will be tougher and only the toughest can stay until the big night on January 5, 2008.

January 5th. Wow. The first thing that came to me was, “Oh, they have to spend Christmas and New Year inside the house!” At that instant, Kuya announced that he is opening the door and those who cannot take the challenge are free to exit the house. The episode was cut as the housemates were left amazed by this shocking declaration.

Initially, this season was expected to run until mid December, right before the holidays. I suppose this tremor was never anticipated by the housemates, unless this has been preplanned and revealed to them even before the show started. Giving them the benefit of the doubt, I reckon the housemates joining because they know in the first place that they’ll be home for Christmas and New Year. If only they knew the twist, would they still go for it?

On a side note, it makes me wonder what drove the PBB production to come into this kind of twist. After four seasons, why double the prize only now? Is it to make the show more interesting to watch after the “hell-week” that happened? Could it be because of the unexpected exits that took place this past week? I honestly think Mcoy was insulted by Kuya’s behavior and Ethel was just, well, being the pasaway that she is, but that's another issue altogether.

Anyway, back to the topic.

Okay, I thought, if I were in the housemates’ position right now, what would I do? Should I leave the house to spend the holidays with my family (as originally planned) or take a shot at the doubled rewards?

This dilemma, I think, is brought about by the culture which we have been brought up as Filipinos. I say it’s a difficult decision because we were taught ever since childhood to value our families just like how we value God, more than money or fame or anything material in this world. So not being able to spend Christmas or New Year (it is when family reunions are usually arranged) is a big no-no to most conservative Filipino families.

But as I look carefully into the situation, if I were a housemate, this can be the only holiday season that I am not spending with my family. I mean, it’s not like I will never come back or something. I can always have my next holidays spent with my loved ones, but this is a one-shot deal that may never come again, so why waste it?

My take on this issue: take up the challenge. After all, only 8 housemates remain; four will be evicted and there is a 50% chance of winning the money. P400,000 isn’t bad at all, so might as well take the risk. If the opportunity gets better, P2M might be on its way, which is a totally good thing!

This is just me being practical and all. Others might need 20 years working in the office to get this amount of money. I might need to work in the lab for several years to get my hands on P400K. It’s money, and no matter how we look at it, we are going to need it for sure. In fact, I even tried paid blogging to make extra moolah!

So now I pass on the question to you: if you were in this predicament, if you were a housemate, what will you do? What will you choose? I’d love to hear you guys out.

I had my very first mobile phone (a Nokia 5110) when I was still in third year high school back in the year 2000. I was one of the first five students in my class to have a mobile phone, a Nokia at that. Having a 5110 was the bomb back then; it was the only phone that offers a game: Snake. A mobile phone with a game function. Right. Who would have thought of that? All my classmates went gaga over my new gadget.

Early on, we would often joke about mobile phones having cameras. Then POOF! It came out. We thought it was just a fad that will soon die down. Fast forward to a few years later. Every mobile phone existing now has its own built-in cam, 1 megapixel at least. Some fad, eh?

The possibilities seem endless for mobile innovation as we can now watch videos using our mobile phones. Thanks to Avot Media, videos can now be delivered in real-time to web-enabled mobile devices. Live video streaming right on our palms, baby!

Avot Media is the very first solution that allows unlimited access to mobile users to choose from billions of videos posted online. Say goodbye to long URLs because the service makes use of a point-and-click access to videos, thus navigation can be done easily in a sec. Likewise, no more delays and poor video quality since Avot Media offers fast transfer of video contents to mobile devices.

If your mobile phone has a web browser, then I guess you’re ready to go. Be sure to check out Avot Media’s product site or corporate site for more detailed information on its services. You can also have a look at the Avot Media blog for additional insights and service updates.

I got to finally post some site updates! Yay! Well, I've been making some little site changes from time to time if you have noticed:

1. After 3 years of blogging, I am now allowing readers to post comments on my entries. I'd love to hear what you guys have to say.

2. You can now subscribe to my blog by clicking the RSS button under the "Click and Bite Me" section of the navigation area. You actually don't need an RSS aggregator as you can use your browsers to view feeds. It's like having a live bookmark to my site. =)

3. I also placed links to the other sites where I can be reached under the "Click and Bite Me" section. I used to have linked thumbnails only for my Multiply albums there, but I figured I should link my whole Multiply site since I've been pretty much active there when I wasn't here. I included links to my Friendster, Y! Mail, and Y! Messenger accounts so you people can easily eat, live, and breathe ME. Haha!

4. I switched my Shoutbox software from Tag-board to Cbox. I get lots of really obscene spams with Tag-board and I've noticed lately that nobody uses Tag-board anymore! I was probably the last one left!

Who says I have to do my Christmas shopping with visits to the mall or with lots of bargaining with vendors? Now, with endless internet possibilities, who says online shopping for Christmas gifts can’t be done?

With my uber busy schedule in school and the Christmas season fast approaching, I don’t think I still have the time to hit the mall and buy presents for my family and friends. Thank goodness there’s couponchief.com to provide answers to my shopping needs. I found some good GAP coupons and Best Buy deals which I can use for the gifts I plan to give my parents. And because of the unbelievable discounts the site offers for several other products, I might be able to get Abi and JC something for Christmas as well!

Oh, the shopaholic in me is starting to stir up! I must get my hands on those coupons fast!

To all my single chix out there and to all the single ladies I know...

To the nice girls who are overlooked, who become friends and nothing more, who don't want to play mind games, who provide a comforting hug and a supportive audience for a story they've heard a thousand times.

This is for the girls who understand that they aren't perfect and that the guys they're interested in aren't either, for the girls who flirt and laugh and worry and obsess over the slightest glance, whisper, touch, because somehow they are able to keep alive that hope, that maybe... maybe this time he'll have understood.

This is for the girls who laugh loud and often, who are comfortable in jeans and shirts and flipflops, who care more than they should for guys who don't really deserve that much of their attention.

This is for those girls who have been in the trenches, who have watched other girls time and time again fake up and make up and fuck up the guys in their lives WITHOUT SAYING A WORD.

Nice girls finish last... and they finish HAPPY. Trust me, good things come to those who wait. =)

I’ve been thinking lately about having an insurance policy. I mean, I am not getting any younger, and as soon I start working, years will also start flying by fast. I have to say I know nothing about insurance as they all look and sound the same to me. With so many insurance companies around, how can I possibly make the right choice?

Thanks to this one site I found online, I may be on my way of getting my own insurance policy. Advantage Term Life can help you decide on the right policy for you. It provides information on policies and several insurance quotes, and so you don’t have to make that difficult and confusing choice of getting the one plan that fits you. It gives you insurance plans' pros and cons to aid you in making the right option. It’s also good to know that Advantage Term Life offers the best (but lowest!) policies, so you can save money on insurance.

Visit Advantage Term Life now to know more about online insurance policy. After all, you aren’t getting too young either. You will never know when you’re going to need it.

I was about to leave the house and head to school when my Mom called to tell my Dad that classes have been canceled because of the non-stop rain. I had my mind set on visiting Doc Sev to give him our gift (it's his burrrrrdddaaay!) and at the same time present my experimental data to him. But because of the not-so-friendly weather and the floods attempting to fill Dapitan today, I am stuck at home with nothing to do but blog and read journal articles.

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Speaking of Doc Sev's birthday, I might just drop by BF later to get him some Starbucks Coffee beans. He loves caffeine so we'll give him loads of it. Plus, I will have an excuse to go out of the house. Haha.

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While trying to print some documents earlier, I found out that our new HP printer software doesn't display ink levels. The page had several unprinted lines, so I guess the black ink's running out. I re-installed the software, found out that I missed installing some components, and that it woundn't complete its installation because my computer doesn't have enough RAM.

Argh.

I must really go out today and buy those RAM cards.

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I do not really watch local movies, but my friends have convinced me to go watch John Lloyd's movie, One More Chance, tonight. Hmmm...

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I hate it when it rains. It's sssssoooooo sad, so gloomy. It's like you have nothing else to do but sleep!

My cousin Ate Ricca and I have long been planning to make our out-of-the-country trip next year. I’m so looking forward to it because it’s more like a celebration for finishing my post grad studies after 3 years than just a vacation.

We’ve considered several destinations already, but we have yet to finalize anything. We actually have some concerns in mind: How much do we need to prepare? Are we allotting money for shopping? Which airline offers the lowest rates? Where are we staying? How do we go around the country? Do we avail a trip package? What’s the best time to go?

I did some online browsing to look for the answers to our questions and found a site that could possibly help us with our concerns. Hotelreservations.com offers the best deals not only on hotel reservations, but also on flight bookings, vacation car rentals, and other vacation packages.

The site gives competitive rates with great flight and hotel discounts on world wide destinations. Be it Europe, the Americas or one of their available 1400 destinations, you are sure to get the lowest and best. What I like about the site is the package offer where they can take care of the flight booking, hotel reservation, and car rental. I mean, if we’d avail of this type of package, we literally don’t have to worry about anything but our shopping money!

I told Ate Ricca to check out the site so she can also see what kind of hotels are up for us. We are very particular when it comes to where we are staying. I have to say that to have a really nice and comfy hotel room to come home to after a tiring day adds up to the nice vacation experience. Actually, Hotelreservations.com has a listing of other places to consider staying at aside from hotels (such as resorts and motels), so options aren’t restricted especially when keeping a tight budget.

We are definitely booking with Hotelreservations.com if ever we get to travel next year. And with their offers, I know we just couldn’t resist it. We just have to go. =)

Thursday last week. 8 November 2007. I came to school early to spend some quiet time to do my reports for DOST. When I stay at home, I usually procrastinate until the day has ended without me typing a single letter for my report. I have constantly been putting it off that I totally forgot it's the 2nd sem already and I badly need to pass my reports ASAP. I needed motivation to do what needs to be done and the laboratory is the perfect place to get that motivation from.

As I was approaching our lab, I saw this blue paper stuck on our door. Announcements, I thought to myself.

Blue paper on our laboratory door

I moved closer and checked out what does it really say.

RCNS updates

So this was it. This was what Dr. Binag called me for 2 months ago. Researchers get to report to the "local scientific community" what they have been doing and improve their research work through the insights and suggestions of other researchers.

Anyway, I looked at the names of those who will be presenting...

names names names

...and nearly fainted when I found mine written under the December 5 heading.

December 5. 2:00 pm. DORCAS CROOC. ahh (faint!)

I was honestly alarmed to find myself presenting my study so early in December. I knew it's going to be in December, but I didn't expect it to fall on the first week! It's just too soon!

So for the past week, I've been doing follow-ups on my experiments to get more reliable and presentable data.

Experimental set-up

What's hard for me is that I have several other deadlines to beat for my money-making brouhaha. But who says I have to sacrifice one of my duties? I can always do things at the same time. After all, I'm not called ultra-amazing Superwoman for nothing.

Doing paid opps while doing experiments

My working area

And so for today, since I am finished with the last few experiments for the first phase of my study, I will be staying at home trying to encode my data. I will be having a meeting with my adviser tomorrow, so I need to prepare the stuff I will report to him. This research update thing goes at the top of my list (together with my paid opps), and next are my pending DOST reports which I hope I can prepare as the days (or weeks) pass by.

*As I was doing this post, the mail man arrived and handed me a letter from DOST. Yes, they are looking for my reports already. Waaaaaahhhhh! OMG, I'm gonna die! (Mariel Rodriguez way of saying)

Maybe it’s time you do something out of the ordinary. Maybe it’s time you indulge yourself into free dating. Who says you have to dress up and dine at the most expensive restaurant in town? Why not date through a free live chat? Maybe it’s time you join Friendsation.

Friendsation makes it possible for people to connect and create networks with other members by live chatting via the Internet or a mobile device. US residents can enjoy not only online chat but also free phone chat.

Whatever connection you are interested to make – friendship, dating, or relationships – Friendsation can make it happen. Somebody out there might just be waiting for you.

This post may have been 2 weeks late but that doesn't mean I totally have forgotten to blog about it. I will make this short and sweet. =)

To my dear Hannah and Chris,

It's the peak of the mountain, the end credits of the movie, and the period of the sentence. You have finally capped the MS program with the defense of your theses! I want you girls to know that I am very very very proud of you both! Two Magna Cum Laudes in a day! Beat that!

We've had our Honda Civic since 1999 and I believe it has served its purpose extremely well. After being with the family for nearly 8 years, Dad’s been thinking of getting the Civic a brother.

Dad checked out the internet to look for Honda cars and found out that you can now compare vehicle prices online. In fact, he found several interesting Honda car quotes. He said that the Honda car prices he discovered from this one online site were significantly lower than the ones he saw in a local car store.

If ever Dad gets a new car, I just hope he’d let us drive it! Dad’s the ultimate car guardian! But then again, I don’t mind spending the next few years with our Civic. I love driving our good old Honda. =)

I just got home from the 41st Days With the Lord Anniversary Mass and I am once again on a high. I was overwhelmed with the experience not only because this is the first time I attended the DWTL Anniv. Mass in my four years of being a Dazer, but also because of the fact that I am representing the Better Living-DWTL Community along with the other BL DWTL core members.

Actually, our attendance wasn't planned at all. Our originally scheduled meeting with our parish priest would coincide with the Anniv. Mass schedule and so we never thought we'd be able to attend the Mass in the first place. In the afternoon, we were informed that our meeting was cancelled. We then decided to just go to the DWTL Anniv. Mass sponsored by the St. Scholastica's College DWTL Community.

Before leaving MHC Parish

Waiting for Jerold outside his house

Backseat peeps: Zaldy, Apol, Grace, Jerold, and cross :)

We all thought that we were late when we got to St. Scho but it turned out that the Mass was just about to start. It honestly felt so good to see hundreds and hundreds of Dazers from different communities gather in one place to celebrate the 4th Day with our Kuya. And getting to renew our commitment as Dazers was the best part of it! The first and last time I got to express my commitment was like four years ago!

After the Mass, posing for the camera was just unavoidable. And it wasn't only us, as in everyone talaga!

Boys Batch 2

With people from UST DWTL (Yup, I serve this community too!)

With our cross

Just when we were about to leave, Mon's van seemed to have some start up problems, and so we took more pics while waiting for him to fix things up.

Apol and Grace

Picture-taking along Estrada St.

Si Grace lang naiba! Brown nga ang BL DWTL eh. Haha.

Some of the people I know from UST Days passed by as we were making tambay along Estrada St. Jhun (my co-BIL staffer) suddenly blurted out, "Wala pa tayong picture, Dorx!" Picture, you say? Madali akong kausap. Hahaha!

With UST Dazers (Karl, Jhun, Patrick, Ja, and the other girl. Awww, I forgot her name.)

Since our tummies were already making noises, we decided to head back to Parañaque and eat our dinner there. Pero the traffic was bad along Sucat Road, so we had no choice but to...

...take pics again!

While waiting for our orders at Sinangag Express BF

Can you tell Mon and Je are so hungry already?

Renewed commitment, time with Kuya, lots of pics, full stomachs, and a fun fun fun bonding time with the BL DWTL core members... the simple joys that made my day. It's good to be with Dazers. I am a happy girl! =)

****

Some thoughts...

Dazers,

We are called to be a Dazer, we are Dazers forever. Remember: He never said it would be easy, He only said it would be worth it. And we all know it was definitely WORTH it.

I been doing paid blogging for a week now and I must say the payout is pretty good. It's Christmas in a month and I need extra cash to buy myself, ehem, gifts. And because of this strong conviction to raise enough moolah before the holidays, I recently joined Blogsvertise to increase my advertisment choices.

If you guys are interested to start getting paid for blogging, you can add Blogsvertise to your list of sites that pay bloggers to blog. The site matches advertiser offers to your interests and it is entirely up to you to accept or reject the offers you see. Plus, payment is on time so no hassle when it comes to the money part.

Be part of the paid-blogging community and experience "how it pays to blog." For more information, visit Blogsvertise now.

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Speaking of paid blogging, you might notice that my posts last week were primarily paid opps. I've been given several assignments and I just needed to finish them off without waiting for the deadline. I am currently in a rush to earn quite a sum of money because I need to buy something that would be of great help to my thesis manuscript writing. Yes, the money I will get from paid blogging will be put to "good use." Haha.

Anyway, I've been doing drafts of several non-paid posts which I plan to publish within the week or the next. I miss doing "normal" posts too, you know. I shall soon be back to my old self once I get the hang of this paid blogging thing.

I have always been a sucker for souvenirs. I would often bring home and keep something from a special event to remind me of the memories. Open my drawer and you will find receipts, tickets, hankies, paper snippets, petals, and autographed stuff.

Yes, autographed stuff.

I give more value to things especially if someone special or someone really popular signed it. One time, I came to this big rock concert and while in the VIP area I had my hankie signed by several rock luminaries. Five years later, that hankie is still in my closet, neatly folded, untouched and unwashed.

I was browsing online when I found a site that understands the value of things with autographs. Memorabilia4u.com has been created for customers interested to purchase anything with an autograph on it: album sleeve, shirt, and compact disc. And of course, there are a lot of signed photos found in the site.

Photos of the items can be viewed with high resolution online, so you can check first the quality of what you are buying. Some items in the site do not just come as signed photos or cards; they are even framed and mounted with other materials or photos to make the memento more special.

Christmas is fast approaching and I might just get something for myself from this site. After all, it’s never too late to add a signed Beyonce photo to my wishlist!

In your lifetime, there will always be people whom you will remember for the many good (or bad!) things they did to you. That someone whom you had your first date with. That someone who first broke your heart. That someone whom you had very very good conversations with (which by the way lasted for hours!). That someone who first called you names. That someone who made you cry all night long.

Then there's this one who you can't seem to forget no matter how many years passed. Who made you happy with even the corniest of jokes. Who stunned you with his witty comments on life. Who was amazing by being simply himself...

We may never get the chance to talk like we used to, we may never be the same again. But just in case I wasn't able to tell you, thinking about our memories still make me smile. Thank you. You are forever in my heart. =)

I miss you, CJ. And you don't know how incredibly much.

(It's funny how Avril's "I miss you..." kept on playing in my head as i was doing this post!)

It’s amazing how the Internet offers endless solutions to our daily life problems. Research, mail, chat, shopping, forums, or just even plain browsing, it’s all here. Name it, and sure enough it’s in the World Wide Web. Over the years, the Internet has become “the” marketplace.

With so many things and services being offered online, it’s hard to keep track of the ones that cater to our needs. So many options are given to us that we often find ourselves in the predicament of choosing the best.

The good thing about the net is that it can also provide answers even to our dilemmas. I found this site, trustsource.org, that gives a guide on a wide variety of products and services that really work; thus, the knotty task of choosing need not be a problem. What’s interesting about trustsource.org is that it gives product rankings based on testimonials and reviews made by people who have actually tried and used these products, so you can be sure of what you can get from the stuff you are interested in.

Take hair loss treatment. How many online products promise a cure for it? Trustsource.org suggests that Provillus is the most effective out there as ranked and reviewed by people who have tried hair loss products.

What if you were short on cash and stuck in between paydays? Trustsource.org also gives a list of cash advance sites where you can make easy payday loans. It's that good!

Deciding on which products or services to get? Be sure to take it from the real stories of real people at www.trustsource.org.

Waiting for your payday just to get those lovely shoes off the rack can be a grueling experience. I hate it when I have to wait till the end of the month to finally get my hands on the money I worked hard for and use it to make myself happy by buying a pair of new sneakers. It’s torture to see the pair that I want every time I pass by the shoe section of the mall, seemingly whispering to me, “Take me. Take me…”

Now, waiting for payday isn’t anymore an option for shopaholics like me. I found out that one of the easiest ways to get fast cash is to apply for cash advance payday loans online. This alternative saves you the trouble of selling properties for cash or borrowing money from friends or relatives.

Online payday loans are small, short-term loans that need no credit checks. Here, lenders require consumers to provide personal, employment, banking, and financial information though an online application prior to the approval of the loan.

Payday loans can now be availed from cash advance stores found in the Internet. These loans offer several advantages over traditional payday loans: fast processing, secure and anonymous application, can be done at the comforts of one’s own home, and no need to stand in line for hours. Best of all, funds are transferred via wire into one’s checking account overnight upon approval of application.

I had a blast when Peter, Leah, and I went to Cebu last year. Aside from our visit to the Magellan’s Cross, Sto. Niño Shrine, Fort San Pedro, and the place where danggit originates, we also did lots of hotel-hopping.

What made one of my hotel visits there really special was getting to finally step inside a real casino. I honestly became really interested in casinos and, ehem, gambling after my first ever casino experience in Cebu.

For those who stay at home most of the time, a casino experience shouldn’t nowadays be unlikely. There are thousands of online casinos to check out in the Internet, but the biggest problem for casino newbies like me lies in choosing which online casino gives the best deal among the rest.

Good thing I found a site that reviews each casino online. Pro360 helps players choose the online casino that suits their own preferences. It cuts the tedious task of going through each of the different online casino sites just to get the one that gives the right, less troublesome, and most exciting gambling experience.

Pro360 provides a detailed review of what each online casino has to offer, like game experience, trust score and bonuses. It gives suggestions on the best online casinos, most voted for online casino, and casinos with highest jackpots, payouts and bonuses. It's online gambling made easy!

Skip making choices. Skip the dilemma. Be sure to check out Pro360 first before you start to get the dice rolling!

Aside from the other gazillion things I have to do in life, e.g. thesis experiments, manuscript, household chores, DWTL duties, lector on Sundays, sell stuff on eBay, prepare GS publication, meet up with friends to keep my social life from completely going down the drain, tutor General Chemistry to a freshman, etc., I have recently decided to add "paid blogging" to my to-do list for extra moolah.

Yep, I'm joining the bandwagon.

Since I am almost always online, I figured getting paid to blog wouldn't be so much of a hassle on my part. I have done a couple of paid opps already as you can see below, and I am just waiting for the other advertisers to give me the go signal and do the other ones I placed my bid on.

My next couple of posts or so may not be of interest to anyone than the advertisers, but I will surely be doing posts that aren't paid from time to time.

So to those asking for a special article about them (READ: Sheila), I'm afraid I have to put that off for a while. I am getting paid to do articles now, you know. Hahahaha! Seriously Shi, I would do something for the barx next time. It's just that I have my hands so full right now. I know you'd understand. =)

Little did people know that I started selling online more than a year ago. I’d use my other sites and online auctions to promote and sell my stuff. Although these sites worked for me, the limitations that they pose would probably not favor those whose business is large scale selling online. Thank goodness there’s an answer to these limitations, so you merchandisers need not fret.

It’s amazing how the internet offers unlimited solutions that get better and better each day. Now, shopping cart softwares are made available online to those who want to turn to e-commerce as their profit source.

That’s where Ashop Commerce enters the picture. Ashop offers an innovative, secure, web-based, hosted store that needs no software installation, so you can build and manage an online store in a jiff from anywhere in the world.

What’s even more amazing is that no programming is required when one uses this shopping cart software. No HTML expertise needed but one still gets to customize the site’s look and features. With this e-commerce software, you can accept credit card payments and use real time shipping methods. Not to mention site traffic reports and technical support and customer service. All for an affordable start up and running cost.

An online store, you say? I say this is an all-amazing deal. Get this and get great value for your money.

A lot of my friends have recently been earning through paid blogging. Ever heard of that? You know, blog and get paid for it. Write and earn at the same time. As in you can use your blog for money. How cool is that?

I have been blogging for three years now and it was only about a month ago that I came across this news of getting paid to blog. It couldn’t be that hard, I thought to myself. In 200 words or less, I can make an instant post about something.

I had to try it.

I immediately looked online to find good websites that offer services for paid blogging. It was there where I stumbled upon Smorty, a haven for those who intend to do blog advertising. Smorty connects advertisers that want their products to be publicized online and bloggers who want to use their blogs to promote the advertisers' products.

But how does this really work, you ask?

Well, in Smorty, bloggers are paid to write their opinions or thoughts on certain products assigned by the advertisers to them. These posts must link the advertisers’ websites so that when a blog visitor reads the post, he can easily view the product the advertiser offers.

I personally would like to recommend Smorty to those who want to start getting paid for blogging. It approves blogs for advertising in an instant—even less than 24 hours after signing up—and it offers a wide variety of topics to blog about.

Go and try it out guys. It’s fun to do what you enjoy doing and get paid at the same time. Visit Smorty now!

This blog is a personal blog written and edited by me. For questions about this blog, please contact dorxie@yahoo.com.

This blog accepts forms of cash advertising, sponsorship, paid insertions or other forms of compensation.

The compensation received may influence the advertising content, topics or posts made in this blog. That content, advertising space or post may not always be identified as paid or sponsored content.

The owner(s) of this blog is compensated to provide opinion on products, services, websites and various other topics. Even though the owner(s) of this blog receives compensation for our posts or advertisements, we always give our honest opinions, findings, beliefs, or experiences on those topics or products. The views and opinions expressed on this blog are purely the bloggers' own. Any product claim, statistic, quote or other representation about a product or service should be verified with the manufacturer, provider or party in question.

This blog does not contain content which might present a conflict of interest.

25 October 2007 -- Another crazy day for us sensors people at the TARC. UST hosted the UK - Philippines sensors workshop dubbed as "BIOSENSORS: Exploring New Domains in Bioanalysis" at the Research Complex. Foreign guests from UK and Singapore came over, and of course, as Doc Sev's minions, we had our tasks during the event.

My initial duty was to prepare the Souvenir Program. It took me a few days to finish the whole thing, which caused me to miss experiments and preparation of experimental materials. But what the heck. I have been doing layout stuff since college, so this was not something new to me. It's funny because until now I get excited when I do these things.

Anyway, a day before the workshop proper I was asked by Ate Karina to man the registration booth--wearing Filipiniana. I got to school really early the next day and helped Sir Bergs put up posters presentations, which by the way, kept on falling every minute or so. By the time the registration started, I was sweaty already and I still needed to change to my Filipiniana costume. Just imagine my haggardness. Argh.

I immediately went to help at the registration booth as soon as I got myself all made up.

Registration booth with Ate Karina and Ate Levi

Registration booth with Tita Beng and Ate Jacq

Chres, Erick, and I helping out at the registration booth

As Doc Sev's minions, we couldn't fully participate in the workshop. As I've said, we had tasks to accomplish for the day. And since we were assigned at the registration booth, we took pics while waiting for late attendees to arrive. We just had to unleash the camwhores in us.

Mam Karen, Chres, and me

Registration peeps at the TARC lobby

TARC gurls - Em, Mama K, Chres, me

At the end of the first session, people came rushing to our booth to ask for extra workshop kits. I tell you: we've encountered every type of human being imaginable. It's important to keep your cool at times like these. Really. Kasi if not, you know what happens.

Me and my Kopiroti bun after being attacked by really scary participants

We went back up to the lab to change into our normal clothes during the second session.

Hanging out in the lab

Prue, Em, Hannah, me

Just before having our lunch, we have decided to take a "batch pic." Yeah. Batch 2005 (BS)/2008 (MS)! Hopefully, this doesn't spoil our expected graduation from the MS program in March.

Batch 2005 / 2008

Doc Sev was the first speaker for the third session held after lunch. With full stomachs and a cozy auditorium, it was hard to keep our eyes open. We did things to amuse ourselves.

The workshop was running an hour late already. By the time Doc Sev was doing the closing remarks, we, the registration committee, have gathered up outside the auditorium, took our seats, all ready to hand out the certificates.

Ready to distribute certificates

People came to approach us. We divided the certificates into groups. Surnames starting with R-Z were the ones assigned to us. A couple of names were mispelled and one wasn't even printed. Thank God Sir Dharm was ready to reprint certificates with corrections. I knew they would come for us if we didn't correct their certificates!

Filipino style cocktails soon followed. When I say Filipino style cocktails, I mean "fiesta-like." We had something like this when we hosted AsiaSense 2007 back in June. We had puto bumbong, bibingka, sapin-sapin, yummy pansit--basically kakanin--but we also had shrimp tempura, chicken lollipops, etc. I noticed our UK and Singaporean guests liked the pansit. They kept coming back for more.

Cocktails night

There was a short cultural show by the Salinggawi Dance Troupe and a game where a palayok needs to be hit while blindfolded.

SDT doing Maglalatik (is that what it's called?)

Dr. Higson trying out the Tinikling

And what is a Pinoy fiesta without karaoke?

Ate Karina and Sir Dharm singing

Our guests seemed to enjoy our singing because they began dancing as soon as we started with our Magic Sing!

Dr. Michel dancing with Dr. Su

Erick dancing with Dr. Hall

I was dead tired when I got home at around 10 pm. Nonetheless, we had so much fun during the day. How many times do you get to host an international conference with all--as in ALL--expenses paid by the sponsoring government?